Impatient, some Senators urging for a solution. The admin can carry on for months with the blockade and disabling the terror regime.

6 hours ago, JerryM said:

Here's the latest:

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116466723361470977

Or in diplomatic speak, Jared Kushner said he wanted to spend more time with his family.

"there is tremendous infighting and confusion within their leadership".

Of course, you killed them! 😄

14 hours ago, ericthai said:

Iran 1, USA 0? Interesting scoreboard.

Iran got hit, isolated, sanctioned, and exposed — but somehow that’s a win because someone posted a slogan online?

Sorry that’s not a victory, that’s propaganda with a halftime whistle.

"Iran got hit, isolated, sanctioned, and exposed — but somehow that’s a win because someone posted a slogan online?"

Iran has been hit, isolated and sanctioned for decades, so what else is new? And btw, what was "exposed" exactly?

Furthermore, Iran got hit by the combined might of the US and Israeli forces, and they're still not defeated. Make no mistake, this is a complete disaster for the WH, and a win for the Iranians, who are winning by not losing. And every single day this complete disaster of a military campaign drags on the name and credibility of the US continues to be dragged through the mud.

More US humiliation:

'Iran’s F-5 Breaches U.S. Patriot Shield: Hidden Gulf Base Damage From Operation Epic Fury Could Cost Billions, Exposes Major American Vulnerability'

https://defencesecurityasia.com/en/iran-f5-breaches-us-patriot-shield-gulf-base-damage-operation-epic-fury-billions/

"Multiple U.S. officials, congressional aides, and individuals familiar with classified damage assessments indicate that Iranian strikes hit dozens of targets across at least seven countries in the Middle East, challenging early narratives that Tehran’s retaliatory capacity had been rapidly neutralized after the opening U.S.-Israeli strikes on February 28, 2026.

The strategic significance deepened when NBC News confirmed that an Iranian F-5 fighter jet successfully conducted a bombing run on Camp Buehring in Kuwait, penetrating layered American air defenses despite the presence of Patriot missile batteries, short-range interceptors, advanced radar coverage, and persistent regional surveillance networks.

That strike directly undermined U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated assertion that the Iranian Air Force had been “completely obliterated,” because operational evidence now demonstrates that Tehran retained enough survivable combat aviation capability to strike hardened U.S. installations in the Gulf battlespace."

Edited April 26Apr 26 by BLMFem

7 minutes ago, riclag said:

Impatient, some Senators urging for a solution. The admin can carry on for months with the blockade and disabling the terror regime.

And it can continue inflicting damage on the world's economy. And you can take some consolation from the fact that as much as the US economy will suffer, most other nations will suffer even more.

Now, this is pure and utter humiliation.

https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/iran-caused-extensive-damage-us-military-bases-publicly-known-rcna331853

15 minutes ago, BLMFem said:

Now, this is pure and utter humiliation.

https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/iran-caused-extensive-damage-us-military-bases-publicly-known-rcna331853

The Pentagon is refusing to confirm or deny the accuracy of the report. Maybe, they're just being modest?

22 hours ago, BLMFem said:

I applaud your quick backpedalling. Of course, you've had years of experience......

Experience of calling out obvious nonsense. You have false teeth too?

1 hour ago, nauseus said:

Experience of calling out obvious nonsense. You have false teeth too?

I'm neither British nor MAGA. Except for a couple of crowns, my teeth are my own.

1 hour ago, BLMFem said:

, and exposed — but somehow that’s a win because someone posted a slogan online?"

Iran has been hit, isolated and sanctioned for decades, so

6 minutes ago, BLMFem said:

I'm neither British nor MAGA. Except for a couple of crowns, my teeth are my own.

All two of 'em. Nice.

6 hours ago, BLMFem said:

"Iran got hit, isolated, sanctioned, and exposed — but somehow that’s a win because someone posted a slogan online?"

Iran has been hit, isolated and sanctioned for decades, so what else is new? And btw, what was "exposed" exactly?

Furthermore, Iran got hit by the combined might of the US and Israeli forces, and they're still not defeated. Make no mistake, this is a complete disaster for the WH, and a win for the Iranians, who are winning by not losing. And every single day this complete disaster of a military campaign drags on the name and credibility of the US continues to be dragged through the mud.

More US humiliation:

'Iran’s F-5 Breaches U.S. Patriot Shield: Hidden Gulf Base Damage From Operation Epic Fury Could Cost Billions, Exposes Major American Vulnerability'

https://defencesecurityasia.com/en/iran-f5-breaches-us-patriot-shield-gulf-base-damage-operation-epic-fury-billions/

"Multiple U.S. officials, congressional aides, and individuals familiar with classified damage assessments indicate that Iranian strikes hit dozens of targets across at least seven countries in the Middle East, challenging early narratives that Tehran’s retaliatory capacity had been rapidly neutralized after the opening U.S.-Israeli strikes on February 28, 2026.

The strategic significance deepened when NBC News confirmed that an Iranian F-5 fighter jet successfully conducted a bombing run on Camp Buehring in Kuwait, penetrating layered American air defenses despite the presence of Patriot missile batteries, short-range interceptors, advanced radar coverage, and persistent regional surveillance networks.

That strike directly undermined U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated assertion that the Iranian Air Force had been “completely obliterated,” because operational evidence now demonstrates that Tehran retained enough survivable combat aviation capability to strike hardened U.S. installations in the Gulf battlespace."

“‘Winning by not losing’ is a pretty low bar for victory. By that logic, any sanctioned country that survives is ‘winning.’ North Korea must be undefeated too.

Yes, Iran has been sanctioned for decades — and their economy, currency, and regional position reflect that. That’s not exactly a scoreboard you brag about.

As for ‘not defeated,’ nobody said this was a regime-change war. The objective has always been limiting capability and projecting deterrence — not planting a flag in Tehran. You don’t measure that by whether Iran still exists.

On the ‘F-5 breaching Patriot’ story — I’d take that with a grain of salt. That outlet isn’t exactly top-tier, and one unverified report doesn’t suddenly mean U.S. air defense is collapsing. Even the best systems in the world aren’t 100% interception-proof — that’s not new, and it’s not the same thing as strategic failure.

Bottom line: taking hits doesn’t equal winning, and surviving pressure isn’t the same as coming out ahead.”**

20 hours ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

Firstly, if you haven’t seen the 'Lego Iran' movies, you really should. They are a brilliant example of 21st-century, state-adjacent propaganda remodelled for the internet and meme age. Let's not forget Trump rose to power on that same sea of rubbish.

Secondly, however puerile they may be (and they are), they are still a step up from the rubbish emanating from the White House. That is where we are. I made the point humorously, but the serious point behind my remark reflects that reality.

The Iranian regime survived and has probably hardened by removing the top layer of long-serving Revolutionary Guards. It is always the 'Colonel class' that has the hunger and vitality to carry forward a more aggressive, outward-facing resistance to Israeli/US aggression. And here we are in a place that should have been left well alone. With Lego. Welcomne to the Dark Ages turns out that progressive liberalism isn't a striaght line graph to enlightenment - we gonna be burning witches soon - just be careful with what cat you get.

“So now the argument is: Iran is ‘winning’ because they made viral Lego videos?

That kind of proves my point.

Those videos you’re talking about are literally AI-generated propaganda designed to shape opinion, not reflect reality.

Even analysts say they’re meant to make complex geopolitics feel simple and emotional — not accurate.

So if your takeaway is ‘they made good memes, therefore the U.S. is losing,’ you’re basically arguing we should judge a war by TikTok engagement.

That’s not strategy — that’s marketing.

And the fact you’re leaning on that instead of actual outcomes kind of answers the original question: what did Iran actually win?”**

14 hours ago, Alan Zweibel said:

So, if the US forces up and leave the theater of war, today, that would count as winning the war?

No. Leaving today wouldn’t automatically mean “winning.” But neither does Iran surviving automatically mean Iran won.

The point is that wars and military campaigns are judged by objectives, not slogans. If the U.S. objective is to degrade Iran’s military/nuclear capability, deter attacks, and protect regional allies, then the question is whether those goals were achieved — not whether Iran still exists or whether America stays forever.

“They didn’t leave” doesn’t prove the U.S. lost. And “Iran didn’t collapse” doesn’t prove Iran won.

So the better question is: what objective did Iran achieve besides surviving the punch?

38 minutes ago, ericthai said:

No. Leaving today wouldn’t automatically mean “winning.” But neither does Iran surviving automatically mean Iran won.

The point is that wars and military campaigns are judged by objectives, not slogans. If the U.S. objective is to degrade Iran’s military/nuclear capability, deter attacks, and protect regional allies, then the question is whether those goals were achieved — not whether Iran still exists or whether America stays forever.

“They didn’t leave” doesn’t prove the U.S. lost. And “Iran didn’t collapse” doesn’t prove Iran won.

So the better question is: what objective did Iran achieve besides surviving the punch?

Which goals? There's been such a jumble of them. .ran's nuclear capability had already been pretty much degraded. How did the American/intervention protect Iran's neighbors? You think that they were well protected. They've got a pretty fragile instrastructe there. And did it deter attacks on them? Was Iran attacking its neighbors before? And hasn't Iran learned the importance of how to exercise it's one big strategic asset? You think that if there is a next time that a US armada approaches, Iran is going to wait to close the strait of Hormuz until they arrive? They're probably kicking themselves for not having done so during the first joint US/Israeli attack.

2 minutes ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

19 minutes ago, ericthai said:

If your argument is ‘Lego movies,’ I think that kind of proves my point about the scoreboard comment.

46 minutes ago, ericthai said:

“So now the argument is: Iran is ‘winning’ because they made viral Lego videos?

That kind of proves my point.

Those videos you’re talking about are literally AI-generated propaganda designed to shape opinion, not reflect reality.

Even analysts say they’re meant to make complex geopolitics feel simple and emotional — not accurate.

So if your takeaway is ‘they made good memes, therefore the U.S. is losing,’ you’re basically arguing we should judge a war by TikTok engagement.

That’s not strategy — that’s marketing.

And the fact you’re leaning on that instead of actual outcomes kind of answers the original question: what did Iran actually win?”**

I didn't say Iran is "winning because they made viral Lego videos." I said those videos represent a shift in how modern conflict operates in the information age, and that the U.S. response has been comparatively inept. There's a difference between "Iran is victorious" and "the U.S. has fumbled its own narrative so badly that Iranian meme warfare looks competent by comparison."

You want "actual outcomes"? Ok here they are.

What Iran "won" (or more accurately, what the U.S. and Israel failed to achieve):

Regime survival The stated goal was regime change or crippling deterrence. Iran's government is intact, hardened, and has cycled in a more aggressive Revolutionary Guard leadership. That's not victory for the West; that's mission failure.

Regional influence maintained despite decades of sanctions, assassinations, and airstrikes, Iran still commands proxy networks across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Hezbollah weakened but not destroyed. Houthis still blockading shipping. That's not collapse; that's resilience.

Narrative shift This is where you're dismissively waving away the Lego videos, but here's the thing: information warfare IS modern warfare. When a sanctioned, isolated state can produce more effective viral content than the most powerful military on earth, that's a problem. Not because memes = missiles, but because legitimacy, morale, and international perception matter. The U.S. looks chaotic, contradictory, and increasingly unserious. Iran looks defiant and coherent (even if that's propaganda nbecsue propaganda works).

Forcing strategic overreach The U.S. and Israel expended massive resources (diplomatic, military, financial) on operations that didn't achieve their stated aims. Iran absorbed the hits, adapted, and is still standing. That's not "winning" in a traditional sense, but it's absolutely not losing when your opponent spent billions to achieve regime change and you're still there.

Your framing ("judge a war by TikTok engagement") is a strawman.

I'm not saying social media engagement = military victory. I'm saying:

Modern conflict includes information space

The U.S. is losing that space badly

Iran (and Russia, and China) understand this; the West is still pretending it's 1991

When your enemy controls the narrative, they don't need to win every battle they just need you to lose legitimacy and Isarel/US has lost it in spades - notice when noone came to help - the ghost coalition of the not willing.

Ok and the Ghost of Kiev - downed mystery pilot most probably a Uranium heist gone terribly wrong. So Trump doesn't lose face. Not that he has any. You did ask.

Lego it is then and the fact that the US abandoned every single base in the region. Paper Eagle meets Lego Lion - Lego lIon wins. Oh and there's , what is it 400kg of highly enriched uranium deep in the bowels of the earth looking for the final step and one if Trump is wounded as I say he is , has had his once chance to get and that is floating away.Sorry Bibi I know it was your life's purpose but we can't always get what we want.

And the fact that they don't even need it - the Straits of Hormuz doomsday weapon finally got an outing and client Gulf states got a beating from which they may never recover. I stand by my premise - in spades. Iran has the cards.

Edited April 26Apr 26 by beautifulthailand99

19 minutes ago, Alan Zweibel said:

Which goals? There's been such a jumble of them. .ran's nuclear capability had already been pretty much degraded. How did the American/intervention protect Iran's neighbors? You think that they were well protected. They've got a pretty fragile instrastructe there. And did it deter attacks on them? Was Iran attacking its neighbors before? And hasn't Iran learned the importance of how to exercise it's one big strategic asset? You think that if there is a next time that a US armada approaches, Iran is going to wait to close the strait of Hormuz until they arrive? They're probably kicking themselves for not having done so during the first joint US/Israeli attack.

These are the goals as laid out by the White House:

• Destroying Iranian naval capabilities ("annihilating" the navy).

• Dismantling ballistic missile and drone production infrastructure.

• Eliminating Iranian ability to fund/arm proxies.

• Guaranteeing Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.

There is not jumble

18 minutes ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

I didn't say Iran is "winning because they made viral Lego videos." I said those videos represent a shift in how modern conflict operates in the information age, and that the U.S. response has been comparatively inept. There's a difference between "Iran is victorious" and "the U.S. has fumbled its own narrative so badly that Iranian meme warfare looks competent by comparison."

You want "actual outcomes"? Ok here they are.

What Iran "won" (or more accurately, what the U.S. and Israel failed to achieve):

Regime survival The stated goal was regime change or crippling deterrence. Iran's government is intact, hardened, and has cycled in a more aggressive Revolutionary Guard leadership. That's not victory for the West; that's mission failure.

Regional influence maintained despite decades of sanctions, assassinations, and airstrikes, Iran still commands proxy networks across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Hezbollah weakened but not destroyed. Houthis still blockading shipping. That's not collapse; that's resilience.

Narrative shift This is where you're dismissively waving away the Lego videos, but here's the thing: information warfare IS modern warfare. When a sanctioned, isolated state can produce more effective viral content than the most powerful military on earth, that's a problem. Not because memes = missiles, but because legitimacy, morale, and international perception matter. The U.S. looks chaotic, contradictory, and increasingly unserious. Iran looks defiant and coherent (even if that's propaganda nbecsue propaganda works).

Forcing strategic overreach The U.S. and Israel expended massive resources (diplomatic, military, financial) on operations that didn't achieve their stated aims. Iran absorbed the hits, adapted, and is still standing. That's not "winning" in a traditional sense, but it's absolutely not losing when your opponent spent billions to achieve regime change and you're still there.

Your framing ("judge a war by TikTok engagement") is a strawman.

I'm not saying social media engagement = military victory. I'm saying:

Modern conflict includes information space

The U.S. is losing that space badly

Iran (and Russia, and China) understand this; the West is still pretending it's 1991

When your enemy controls the narrative, they don't need to win every battle they just need you to lose legitimacy and Isarel/US has lost it in spades - notice when noone came to help - the ghost coalition of the not willing.

Ok and the Ghost of Kiev - downed mystery pilot most probably a Uranium heist gone terribly wrong. So Trump doesn't lose face. Not that he has any. You did ask.

Lego it is then and the fact that the US abandoned every single base in the region. Paper Eagle meets Lego Lion - Lego lIon wins.

Regime change was not a stated goal.

1 minute ago, Yellowtail said:

Regime change was not a stated goal.

Pantomime fashion "Oh Yes it was" and I note you only answer one of my many points and it's worth repeating and the fact that the US abandoned every single base in the region

Edited April 26Apr 26 by beautifulthailand99

2 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

These are the goals as laid out by the White House:

• Destroying Iranian naval capabilities ("annihilating" the navy).

• Dismantling ballistic missile and drone production infrastructure.

• Eliminating Iranian ability to fund/arm proxies.

• Guaranteeing Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.

There is not jumble

And if American forces leave the arena without further conflict, will these goals have been met?

And do the goals declared by Donald Trump entirely coincide with these goals?

1 minute ago, Yellowtail said:

Regime change was not a stated goal.

Can you tell us what was the stated goal, as i haven't read anything about an existing plan from trump.

Oh wait.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/4/trumps-endgame-in-iran-regime-change-without-us-boots-on-the-ground

Trump’s endgame in Iran: ‘Regime change’ without US boots on the ground

And while I'm on a roll, I'd say this is as bad or even worse than Suez was for the end of the British Empire. At least Britain had rational fin de siècle leadership with real strategic goals, just ones the US didn't share in the newly emerging Pax Americana landscape.

This is worse for two reasons: one, because it focuses largely on Israel's narrow sectional interests rather than coherent American strategy, and two, because it's led by the chaotic and idiotic non-leadership of Donald J. Trump, pissing away what's left of American imperial power to prove it was more mirage than fact all along.

1 minute ago, Alan Zweibel said:

And if American forces leave the arena without further conflict, will these goals have been met?..

Do you mean leave today?

1 minute ago, Alan Zweibel said:

And do the goals declared by Donald Trump entirely coincide with these goals?

Trump says any number of things off the cuff that are not part of the stated goals.

3 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

Can you tell us what was the stated goal, as i haven't read anything about an existing plan from trump.

Oh wait.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/4/trumps-endgame-in-iran-regime-change-without-us-boots-on-the-ground

Trump’s endgame in Iran: ‘Regime change’ without US boots on the ground

You go with what Al Jazeera and AI says, I'll go with what the White House says, but nice try.

5 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

Do you mean leave today?

Trump says any number of things off the cuff that are not part of the stated goals.

So you said them but he didn't state them?

Given that this war is being done on Trump say so, those White House pronouncements look more like an unconvincing attempt at erasure of Trump's previous goals.

6 minutes ago, Alan Zweibel said:

So you said them but he didn't state them?

Given that this war is being done on Trump say so, those White House pronouncements look more like an unconvincing attempt at erasure of Trump's previous goals

Please provide the list of goals Trump presented at the start of the war and we'll go from there.

5 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

Please provide the list of goals Trump presented at the start of the war and we'll go from there.

I guess the reason you're specifying the start of war is to disqualify any subsequent goals that he revealed?

3 minutes ago, Alan Zweibel said:

I guess the reason you're specifying the start of war is to disqualify any subsequent goals that he revealed?

Provide the original list, and each updated list, that was published, that's fine.

On 4/18/2026 at 6:27 AM, novacova said:

Westerners in open support of the Iranian regime offers too much exposure of one’s true self.

Like those Lego reports

4 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

Provide the original list, and each updated list, that was published, that's fine.

Here's are 7 goals with links, although it should be pointed out that a demand for unconditional surrender encompasses them all and then some.

1We’re going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground. It will be totally again obliterated.”

2“We’re going to annihilate their navy.”

3“We’re going to ensure that the region’s terrorist proxies can no longer destabilize the region or the world and attack our forces, and no longer use their I.E.D.s, or roadside bombs as they are sometimes called, to so gravely wound and kill thousands and thousands of people, including many Americans.”

4And we will ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon. It’s a very simple message. They will never have a nuclear weapon.”

5 “Finally, to the great proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand. Stay sheltered. Don’t leave your home. It’s very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere. When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.”

https://archive.ph/zcTV1

Since then,

Trump demands 'unconditional surrender' from Iran as Putin speaks with Iran's president

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yq82k1wk8o

Trump issues expletive-laden threat to Iran demanding Strait of Hormuz be opened

BBC News

Trump issues expletive-laden threat to Iran demanding Str...

In a post on social media, the US president says in Iran “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one” if the key shipping lane is not reopened.

4 minutes ago, Rhys said:

Like those Lego reports

The US should have made better ones - they didn't so the concedded the information sphere to the enemy.

1 hour ago, Yellowtail said:

You go with what Al Jazeera and AI says, I'll go with what the White House says, but nice try.

So do I, anything else you want to ignore?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/04/10/trump-goals-iran-achieved/

5. Push for regime change

Trump made no secret of his desire for regime change in Iran and, at the end of his video in February, encouraged the Iranian people to seize their government after the initial airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel had stopped.

“It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations,” Trump said then.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/02/28/trump-iran-war-regime-change-freedom/

Florida, where he arrived Friday night just hours before the military strikes began. Television news played in the background at the time of the call.

Despite his previous criticism of U.S. involvement in Middle Eastern wars — particularly American lives lost during efforts to topple and install new regimes — Trump on Saturday made the case for the United States helping to bring about regime change in the country. In the video address, Trump urged Iranians once the strikes cease to “take over your government,” telling them “this will be probably your only chance for generations.”